The Senate Committee on Overseas Pakistanis & Human Resource Development held a meeting here in Islamabad. Secretary Ministry of Overseas, Pervez Ahmed Junejo, briefed the Senate Committee on the performance of the Ministry. He apprised the Honorable Members of the Committee of the steps taken by the Ministry under the leadership of Zulfikar Bukhari, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Overseas Pakistanis & HRD, to facilitate Pakistanis abroad. The matters of EOBI were also discussed in the meeting. The Committee Members praised the decision of increasing the pension of EOBI pensioners. The efforts made by the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis & HRD to resolve matters of Overseas Pakistanis are commendable, said Senator Hillal-ur-Rehman, Chairman of the Senate Committee. The Committee Members appreciated the successful dialogue with Qatari government to facilitate Pakistanis that intend to apply for work visas. In this view, the establishment of Qatar Visa Centers in Pakistan was deemed an ideal step. The Committee was also briefed about the introduction of the Overseas Desks at airports to facilitate entry and exit of overseas Pakistanis. Zulfikar Bukhari assured the Committee that the fast-track court to resolve property related issues of overseas Pakistanis will soon be set up. The Senate Committee appreciated the initiatives taken by the ministry during the past 3 months including the introduction of transparency in the protectorate system, e-governance and creation of opportunities for overseas Pakistanis to contribute in the development of the country. The Senate Committee reviewed the cases of overseas Pakistani prisoners and recommended that a viable mechanism be introduced for the resolution of their problems. Further it was decided that Workers Welfare Fund will undertake development initiatives in accordance with its mandate and the welfare of the workers. Senator Waseem Shehzad highlighted the importance of initiatives to enhance export of manpower from Pakistan. The Senate Committee also acknowledged the need to upgrade the skills of Pakistani workers in order to compete at international level. In the end, the Chairman of the Committee recommended that the Ministry may take all possible measures to provide assistance to Pakistani prisoners abroad in addition to the facilitation of overseas Pakistanis in Pakistan. ***** ?
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